Connector

ABSTRACT

A connector includes a first housing and a second housing. The second housing is attached with the first housing. An accommodating part is provided in the first housing. A first lock portion is provided in the accommodating part and is capable of being displaced. A detection member is accommodated in the accommodating part and is displaced according to a displacement of the first lock portion. A second lock portion is provided in the second housing and pushes the first lock portion to displace the first lock portion. And the second lock portion is engaged with the first lock portion when the second housing is attached with the first housing. A first restricting portion is provided in the first lock portion. A second restricting portion is provided in the detection member and is engaged with the first restricting portion when the first lock portion is displaced by the second lock portion. A release portion is provided in the second housing and releases the first restricting portion from the second restricting portion when the first lock portion is engaged with the second lock portion.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to a connector which enables the detectionof its fitting condition.

Conventionally, as a connector which enables the detection of a fittingcondition of a pair of housings thereof, there has been known aconnector which includes a pair of connector housings and a fittingdetection member that is built in one of the connector housings (see,Patent Document 1).

In this connector, a lock arm is provided on one of the connectorhousing which is elastically deformed towards a deflection space by theother connector housing. An elastic arm is provided on the detectionmember, and this elastic arm is elastically deformed in association witha deflecting action of the lock arm. In addition, a restrictionreceiving portion is provided on the elastic arm, and this restrictionreceiving portion is locked on a locking portion on the one connectorhousing when the elastic arm is deformed so as to be restricted frombeing pushed into the deflection space. Then, when the pair of connectorhousings are properly fitted in or on each other, the elastic arm iselastically restored to its original state in association with the lockarm is restored to its original state, whereby the detection member isallowed to be pushed into the deflection space.

Consequently, in such a state that the pair of connector housings areproperly fitted in or on each other, since the detection member can bepushed into the deflection space, the operator can detect that the pairof connector housings are in the proper fitting state.

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication Number 2004-71288

In the connector described above, however, since the elastic arm of thedetection member is elastically deformed in association with thedeflecting action of the lock arm, there has been a fear that therestoration force of the elastic arm is reduced as a result of thedetection member being used a plurality of times, and there has been apossibility that the durability of the detection member is reduced.

In addition, the elastic arm of the detection member withdraws rearwardsin the fitting direction of the connector housings and expands in awidth direction of the detection member as a result of the deflectingaction of the lock arm. Therefore, a space is necessary which permitsthe withdrawal of the detection member and the expansion of the elasticarm, calling for enlargement of the connector in size.

SUMMARY

It is therefore an advantage of some aspects of the invention to providea connector which can increase the durability of a detection member andwhich can suppress the enlargement thereof in size.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a connector,comprising:

a first housing;

a second housing configured to be attached with the first housing;

an accommodating part provided in the first housing;

a first lock portion provided in the accommodating part and configuredto be displaced;

a detection member accommodated in the accommodating part and configuredto be displaced according to a displacement of the first lock portion;

a second lock portion provided in the second housing and configured topush the first lock portion to displace the first lock portion and toengaged with the first lock portion when the second housing is attachedwith the first housing;

a first restricting portion provided in the first lock portion;

a second restricting portion provided in the detection member andconfigured to be engaged with the first restricting portion when thefirst lock portion is displaced by the second lock portion; and

a release portion provided in the second housing and configured torelease the first restricting portion from the second restrictingportion when the first lock portion is engaged with the second lockportion.

The connector may further comprise a third restricting portion providedin the accommodating part; and a fourth restricting portion provided onthe detection member and contacting the third restricting portion so asto restrict a movement of the detection member in a directionintersecting an inserting direction in which the second housing isinserted into the first housing to be attached therewith.

The connector may further comprise a fifth restricting portion providedin the accommodating part; and a sixth restricting portion provided inthe detection member and contacting the fifth restricting portion so asto restrict a movement of the detection member in a direction oppositeto an inserting direction in which the second housing is inserted intothe first housing to be attached therewith.

The connector may be configured such that: the fifth restricting portionis a projection provided on the accommodating part, the sixthrestricting portion is a groove formed on the detection member, and theprojection is engaged with the groove.

The connector may further comprise a holding portion provided in thedetection member and configured to come in contact with the secondhousing so as to hold a state where the detection member is releasedfrom the first housing when the first lock portion is engaged with thesecond lock portion.

The connector may further comprise: a groove formed on the detectionmember; and a projection provided on the accommodating part and engagedwith the groove.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a female housing of a connectoraccording to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the female housing shown in FIG. 1Awithout an upper face of an accommodating part.

FIG. 1C is a sectional view of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a detection member of the connectorshown in FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2B is an enlarged view of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 2C is another perspective view of the detection member shown inFIG. 2A.

FIG. 2D is an enlarged view of FIG. 2C.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the female housing shown in FIG. 1Aassembled with the detection member shown in FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3B is a side view of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 4A is an enlarged view of FIG. 3B.

FIG. 4B is an enlarged view of FIG. 4A as viewed from an opposite sideto the side shown in FIG. 4A.

FIG. 4C is a sectional view of FIG. 4A.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a male housing of the connectoraccording to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the connector according to the firstembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7A is a perspective view showing an initiating state of fitting ofthe pair of housings of the connector according to the first embodimentinvention start.

FIG. 7B is a sectional view showing a state in which the fitting of thepair of housings is progressing from the state shown in FIG. 7A.

FIG. 7C is an enlarged view of FIG. 7B.

FIG. 8A is a perspective view showing a state in which the pair ofhousings of the connector according to the first embodiment of theinvention are in the midst of fitting in or on each other.

FIG. 8B is a sectional view of FIG. 8A.

FIG. 9A is a sectional view showing a state in which the fitting of thepair of housings is progressing from the state shown in FIG. 7C.

FIG. 9B is a sectional view showing a state in which the fitting of thepair of housings is progressing from the state shown in FIG. 9A.

FIG. 10A is a perspective view showing the connector according to thefirst embodiment of the invention in which the pair of housings properlyfit in or on each other.

FIG. 10B is a sectional view of FIG. 10A.

FIG. 10C is an enlarged view of FIG. 10B.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of FIG. 10A.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the connector according to thefirst embodiment of the invention in which the pair of housings properlyfit in or on each other with the detection member removed.

FIG. 13A is a perspective view of one housing of a connector accordingto a second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 13B is an enlarged view of FIG. 13A.

FIG. 14A is a perspective view of a detection member of the connectoraccording to the second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 14B is an enlarged view of FIG. 14A.

FIG. 15A is a sectional view of the one housing of the connectoraccording to the second embodiment of the invention with the detectionmember assembled thereto.

FIG. 15B is a sectional view of the connector of the second embodimentof the invention whose pair of housings are in the midst of fitting inor on each other.

FIG. 15C is a sectional view of the connector of the second embodimentof the invention whose pair of housings have properly fitted in or oneach other.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLIFIED EMBODIMENTS

Exemplified embodiments of the invention are described below in detailwith reference to the accompanying drawings.

A first embodiment will be described by FIGS. 1 to 12.

A connector 1 according to this embodiment includes a pair of housings3, 5 which fit in or on each other and a detection member 7 which isassembled to a female housing 3 (a first housing), which constitutes oneof the pair housings, for detecting a fitting condition of the pair ofhousings 3, 5. The female housing 3 includes an accommodating part 9which defines a space for accommodating the detection member 7 and alock band portion 11 (a first lock portion) which can be deflected intothe accommodating part 9. A male housing 5 (a second housing), whichconstitutes the other housing, includes a lock portion 13 (a second lockportion) which deflects the lock band portion 11 so that the lock bandportion 11 can ride thereover when the pair of housings 3, 5 are fittedtogether and on which the lock band portion 11 is locked in such a statethat the pair of housings 3, 5 are fitted together. In other words, thelock portion 13 pushes the lock band portion 11 to displace the lockband portion 11. The detection member 7 is disposed above the lock bandportion 11 and varies its disposition position as the lock band portion11 deflects.

A disassembling movement restricting portion 17 (a second restrictingportion) is provided on the detection member 7. This disassemblingmovement restricting portion 17 is brought into engagement with arestricting portion 15 (a first restricting portion) provided on thelock band portion 11 in such a state that the lock band portion 11 issituated on the lock portion 13 so as to restrict the detection member 7from moving in a disassembling direction relative to the female housing3. A release portion 19 is provided on the male housing 5. This releaseportion 19 releases the engagement between the restricting portion 15and the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 in such a statethat the lock band portion 11 is locked on the lock portion 13 so as torelease the restriction on the detection member 7 which restricts thedetection member 7 from moving in the disassembling direction relativeto the female housing 3.

In addition, a loosening restricting portion 23 (a fourth restrictingportion) is provided on the detection member 7. This looseningrestricting portion 23 is brought into abutment with a loose abutmentrestriction portion 21 (a third restricting portion) provided on theaccommodating part 9 so as to be restricted from moving in a directionwhich intersects an inserting direction in which the male housing 5 isinserted into the female housing 3 to be fitted therewith.

Further, a movement restricting portion 27 (a sixth restricting portion)is provided on the detection member 7. This movement restricting portion27 is brought into abutment with an abutting restricting portion 25 (afifth restricting portion) provided on the accommodating part 9 so as tobe restricted from moving in the assembling direction. The movementrestricting portion can be restricted from moving in a directionopposite to the inserting direction.

Additionally, a holding portion 29 is provided on the detection member7. This holding portion 29 is brought into abutment with the malehousing 5 in such a state that the pair of housings 3, 5 are in a properfitting state so as to hold the disengagement of the restricting portion15 from the disassembling movement restricting portion 17.

As is shown in FIGS. 1 to 12, the female housing 3 is formed into acylindrical shape and has a plurality of terminal accommodatingcompartments 31 which are formed in an interior thereof. Terminals (notshown) are accommodated in the plurality of terminal accommodatingcompartments 31 and the terminals are electrically connected to electricwires (not shown). The lock band portion 11 is provided at an upperportion of the female housing 3 in FIG. 1A so as to deflect freely. Alocking projecting portion 33 is provided at a leading end of the lockband portion 11 so as to project downwards in FIG. 4C. When the femalehousing 3 and the male housing 5 are fitted together, the lock bandportion 11 holds the fitting state of the female housing 3 and the malehousing 5 by the locking projecting portion 33 being locked on the lockportion 13 on the male housing 5.

The male housing 5 is formed into a cylindrical shape which is smallerin diameter than the female housing 3 and includes a plurality ofterminal accommodating compartments 35 which are formed in an interiorthereof. Mating terminals (not shown) are accommodated in the pluralityof terminal accommodating compartments 35. The mating terminals areelectrically connected to electric wires (not shown) and are alsoelectrically connected to the terminals which are accommodated in thefemale housing 3. The lock portion 13 is provided on an upper face of anouter circumferential portion of the male housing 5 so as to projectupwards in FIG. 7B. An inclined face is provided on the lock portion 13which inclines towards a fitting direction into the female housing 3.The release portion 19 is provided to the rear of the lock portion 13 inthe fitting direction, and a locking recess portion 37 is definedbetween the lock portion 13 and the release portion 19. When the lockportion 13 fits into the female housing 3, the lock band portion 11 ofthe female housing 3 is deflected upwards by the inclined face of thelock portion 13, and the locking projecting portion 33 is locked in thelocking recess portion 37 by the locking projecting portion 33 on thelock band portion 11 riding over the lock portion 13, whereby the lockportion 13 and the lock band portion 11 are put in a locking state.

In the female housing 3 of the pair of housings 3, 5 which fit in or oneach other, the accommodating part 9 is provided which defines a spaceportion above the lock band portion 11, and the detection member 7 isassembled into this accommodating part 9 which detects a fittingcondition between the pair of housings 3, 5 based on whether or not thedetection member 7 can be removed from the female housing 3.

The detection member 7 is assembled into the accommodating part 9 so asto be disposed above the lock band portion 11. The disposition positionof the detection member 7 then varies as the lock band portion 11deflects. This detection member 7 includes the loosening restrictingportion 23, the movement restricting portion 27, a fall restrictingportion 39, the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 and theholding portion 29.

The loosening restricting portion 23 is made up of upper faces of aplurality of (in this embodiment, three) projecting portions which areprovided on both side portions of the detection member 7. The looseningrestricting portions 23 are in abutment with the loose abutmentrestricting portion 21 which is made up of lateral faces of theaccommodating part 9 of the female housing 3 in such a state that thedetection member 7 is assembled into the female housing 3. With thedetection member 7 assembled into the female housing 3, by the abutmentof the loosening restricting portions 23 with the loose abutmentrestricting portions 21, the detection member 7 is restricted frommoving in the direction which intersects the inserting direction (in alateral direction of the detection member 7). In other words, theloosening of the detection member 7 relative to the female housing 3 isrestricted, thereby making it possible to hold the assembled state ofthe detection member 7 in the female housing 3 in a stable fashion. Notethat while the plurality of loosening restricting portions 23 areprovided on each of the lateral side portions of the detection member 7,only one loosening restricting portion 23 may be provided as long as theloosening of the detection member 7 can be restricted. In addition, twoand more than three loosening restricting portions 23 may be provided torestrict the loosening of the detection member 7 further.

The movement restricting portion 27 is provided on an upper face of thedetection member 7 so as to project therefrom and is brought intoabutment with the abutting restricting portion 25 which constitutes anend face in the assembling direction of an upper side of theaccommodating part 9 in FIG. 4C. By being brought into abutment with theabutting restricting portion 25 in such a state that the detectionmember 7 is assembled into the female housing 3, the movementrestricting portion 27 restricts the detection member 7 from moving intothe accommodating part 9 in the assembling direction so as to positionthe detection member 7 with respect to the female housing 3. Themovement restricting portion 27 can be restricted from moving in theinserting direction. An initial position of the detection member 7before the pair of housings 3, 5 are fitted together is held by theabutment between the movement restricting portion 27 and the abuttingrestricting portion 25.

The fall restricting portion 39 is made up of lower faces of portionswhich are provided on the detection member 7 on both side portions ofthe disassembling movement restricting portion 17 thereof so as toproject therefrom. The lower faces or fall restricting portions 39 arethen brought into abutment with abutting fall restricting portions 41which constitute part of the upper face of the lock band portion 11. Thefall restricting portions 39 are brought into abutment with the abuttingfall restricting portions 41 in such a state that the detection member 7is assembled into the female housing 3 to thereby restrict the detectionmember 7 from falling downwards from a space defined in the lock bandportion 11 which is formed into a bifurcate shape. By abutment betweenthe fall restricting portions 39 and the abutting fall restrictingportions 41, a posture of the detection member 7 can be stabilized whichis taken when the detection member 7 moves in the assembling anddisassembling directions relative to the female housing 3.

The disassembling movement restricting portion 17 is provided at aleading end of a plate-like portion of the detection member 7 whichprojects in the assembling direction so as to project downwards. Thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 is brought into engagementwith the restricting portion 15 which is provided at a branch portion ofthe lock band portion 11 which is formed into the bifurcate shape insuch a state that the lock band portion 11 is situated on the lockportion 13. To describe in detail, when the lock band portion 11deflects upwards, the disposition position of the detection member 7 isshifted upwards. As this occurs, an end portion in the assemblingdirection of the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 isbrought into abutment with the release portion 19 of the male housing 5,whereby the detection member 7 is moved in the disassembling directionindicated by an arrow in FIG. 7C. In addition, since the lock bandportion 11 is inclined towards the disassembling direction of thedetection member 7, the detection member 7 is also moved in thedisassembling direction by the inclination of the lock band portion 11.The movement of the detection member in the disassembling directionbrings the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 into engagementwith the restring portion 15. The detection member 7 is restricted frommoving in the disassembling direction by the engagement between thedisassembling movement restricting portion and the restricting portion15, whereby the detection member 7 is prevented from being removed fromthe accommodating part 9 of the female housing 3. Because of this, insuch a state that the lock band portion 11 is situated on the lockportion 13, that is, in such a state that the pair of housings 3, 5 arenot yet in the proper fitting state, the detection member 7 cannot beremoved from the female housing 3, thereby making it possible to preventan erroneous fitting of the pair of housings 3, 5. The engagement of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 with the restrictingportion 15 is released by the release portion 19 provided on the malehousing 5.

The release portion 19 is provided to the rear of the lock portion 13 inthe fitting direction so as to project higher than the lock portion 13.The release portion 19 is brought into abutment with the disassemblingmovement restricting portion 17 in such a state that the lock bandportion 11 is in engagement with the lock portion 13 so as to releasethe engagement between the restricting portion 15 and the disassemblingmovement restricting portion 17. To describe in detail, the lockingprojecting portion of the lock band portion 11 is brought intoengagement with the locking recess portion 37, whereby the lock bandportion 11 deflects downwards so as to attempt to shift the dispositionposition of the detection member 7 downwards. As this occurs, aninclined face formed at a leading end in the assembling direction of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 of the detection member 7is brought into abutment with the release portion, whereby only the lockband portion is moved downwards while the disposition position of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 (the detection member 7)is held so that the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 rideson the release portion 19. In this way, by only the lock band portion 11being moved downwards while the position of the disassembling movementrestricting portion 17 is held in the way described above, theengagement between the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 andthe restricting portion 15 is released, whereby the detection member 7can be removed from the accommodating part 9 of the female housing 9.Because of this, when the lock band portion 11 is in engagement with thelock portion 13, that is, when the pair of housings 3, 5 are in theproper fitting state, the detection member 7 can be removed from thefemale housing 3, thereby making it possible to detect the properfitting state of the pair of housings 3, 5. The disengagement of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 from the restrictingportion 15 is held by the holding portion 29.

The holding portion 29 is made up of portions which are provided so asto project from lower faces of both side portions of the detectionmember 7. The holding portions 29 are brought into abutment with anabutting holding portion 43 provided at an end portion in the fittingdirection of the male housing 5 in such a state that the pair ofhousings 3, 5 are in the proper fitting state so as to hold thedisengagement of the restricting portion 15 from the disassemblingmovement restricting portion 17. To describe in detail, when the pair ofhousings 3, 5 fit in or on each other, the holding portions 29 arebrought into abutment with the abutting holding portion 43. When thefitting of the pair of housings 3, 5 progresses further, the holdingportions 29 ride on an upper portion of the abutting holding portion 43.With the holding portions 29 kept riding on the upper portion of theabutting holding portion 43, only the lock band portion 11 deflectsdownwards while the disposition position of the detection member 7 isheld upwards. Because of this, in such a state that the pair of housings3, 5 are in the proper fitting state, the disposition position of thedetection member 7 can be held upwards by the holding portions 29,thereby making it possible to hold the disengagement of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 and the restrictingportion 15. In addition, by the holding portions 29 riding on the upperportion of the abutting holding portion 43, when the pair of housings 3,5 are in the proper fitting state, the detection member 7 is moved so asto be pushed upwards as indicated by an arrow in FIG. 10C, which canassist the removal of the detection member 7. In addition, when the pairof housings 3, 5 are in the proper fitting state, an upper face of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 is brought into abutmentwith the abutting restricting portion 25, whereby the detection memberis moved so as to be pushed upwards in the disassembling direction asindicated by the arrow in FIG. 10C, which can assist the removal of thedetection member 7.

In addition, a manipulating portion 45 is provided on the movementrestricting portion 27 of the detection member 27 so as to be pinchedwith the finger and thumb of the operator. For example, when the pair ofhousings 3, 5 are in a semi-fitting state, the detection member 7 cannotbe removed by pinching the manipulating portion 45 due to the engagementbetween the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 and therestricting portion 15. In contrast, when the pair of housings 3, 5 arein the proper fitting state, the engagement between the disassemblingmovement restricting portion 17 and the restricting portion 15 isreleased, whereby the detection member 7 can be removed by pinching themanipulating portion 45. As this occurs, since the manipulating portion45 is pushed out due to the holding portions 29 riding on the upperportion of the abutting holding portion 43 and the upper face of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 being brought intoabutment with the abutting restricting portion 25, the pinching of themanipulating portion 45 is facilitated, thereby making it possible toremove the detection member 7 from the female housing 3 easily.

A fitting action of the pair of housings 3, 5 and a detecting action ofthe detection member 7 of the connector 1 configured as has beendescribed heretofore will be described below.

Before the pair of housings 3, 5 are fitted together, in the detectionmember 7 and the female housing 3, the loosening restricting portions 23are in abutment with the loose abutment restricting portions 21, themovement restricting portion 27 is in abutment with the abuttingrestricting portion 25, and the fall restricting portions 39 are inabutment with the abutting fall restricting portions 41, whereby thedetection member 7 is restricted from moving in the direction whichintersects the assembling direction, the assembling direction and thefalling direction relative to the female housing 3. By the detectionmember 7 being restricted in the way described above, the detectionmember 7 can be positioned accurately with respect to the accommodatingpart 9 of the female housing 3 and can also be held in the position.

In the pair of housings 3, 5, when the pair of housings 3, 5 are startedto be fitted together, the lock band portion 11 starts to ride on theupper portion of the lock portion 13. As this occurs, in the detectionmember 7 and the male housing 5, an end face in the assembling directionof the disassembling movement restriction portion 17 of the detectionmember 7 is brought into abutment with an end face of the releaseportion 19 of the male housing 5, and the detection member 7 starts tomove in the disassembling direction.

In the midst of fitting of the pair of housings 3, 5 (or in thesemi-fitting state thereof), in the pair of housings, 3, 5, the lockband portion 11 is deflected upwards by the lock portion 13, and thelocking projecting portion 33 of the lock band portion 11 is situated onthe lock portion 13. As this occurs, in the detection member 7 and thepair of housings 3, 5, the disassembling movement restricting portion 17of the detection member 7 is brought into engagement with therestricting portion 15 of the lock band portion 11 while the abutmentbetween the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 and therelease portion 19 is held, whereby the detection member 7 is restrictedfrom moving in the disassembling direction. When the fitting of the pairof housings 3, 5 is progress further, the disassembling movementrestricting portion 17 is situated on the release portion 19. However,when the locking projecting portion 33 of the lock band portion 11 issituated on the lock portion 13 (when the locking projecting portion 33is not locked in the locking recess portion 37), the engagement betweenthe disassembling movement restricting portion 17 and the restrictingportion 15 is held, whereby the detection member 7 is restricted frommoving in the disassembling direction. Consequently, when the lock bandportion 11 is not locked on the lock portion 13, that is, when the pairof housings 3, 5 are in the semi-fitting state, the detection member 7cannot be removed from the female housing 3, thereby making it possibleto detect that the pair of housings 3, 5 are not yet in the properfitting state.

In such a state that the pair of housings 3, 5 fit in or on each otherin a proper fashion, in the pair of housings 3, 5, the lockingprojecting portion 33 of the lock band portion 11 rides over the lockportion 13 to thereby be locked in the locking recess portion 37. Then,the lock portion 13 and the lock band portion 11 are put in a lockingstate, whereby the fitting state of the pair of housings 3, 5 is held.As this occurs, in the detection member 7 and the pair of housings 3, 5,the lock band portion 11 is deflected downwards with the disassemblingmovement restricting portion 17 kept positioned on the release portion19 by the engagement between the locking projecting portion 33 and thelocking recess portion 37, whereby the engagement between thedisassembling movement restriction portion 17 and the restrictingportion 15 is released. Thus, the restriction on the detection member 7is released which restricts the detection member 7 from moving thedisassembling direction. In addition, the holding portions 29 of thedetection member 7 are brought into abutment with the abutting holdingportion 43 of the male housing 5, and the upper face of thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 is brought into abutmentwith the abutting restricting portion 25 of the female housing 3,whereby the detection member 7 is moved so as to be pushed out of theaccommodating part 9. By pinching the manipulating portion 45 of thedetection member 7 to pull it out in the disassembling direction, thedetection member 7 can be removed from the female housing 3.Consequently, when the lock band portion 11 is locked on the lockportion 13 or when the pair of housings 3, 5 are in the proper fittingstate, the detection member 7 can be removed from the female housing 3,thereby making it possible to detect that the pair of housings 3, 5 arenow in the proper fitting state.

In this way, the fitting state of the pair of housings 3, 5 can bedetected based on whether or not the detection member 7 can be removedfrom the female housing 3, thereby making it possible to prevent anerroneous fitting of the pair of housings 3, 5.

In the connector 1 configured as has been described heretofore, thedetection member 7 is disposed on the lock band portion 11 and thedisposition position of the detection member 7 varies as the lock bandportion 11 deflects. When the disposition position of the detectionmember 7 is shifted upwards with the lock band portion 11 situated onthe lock portion 13, the disassembling movement restricting portion 17provided on the detection member 7 is brought into engagement with therestricting portion 15 provided on the lock band portion 11, whereby thedetection member 7 is restricted from moving in the disassemblingdirection relative to the female housing 3. Because of this, when thepair of housings 3, 5 are not yet in the proper fitting state, thedetection member 7 cannot be removed from the female housing 3.

In addition, the engagement between the restricting portion 15 and thedisassembling movement restricting portion 17 is released by the releaseportion 19 provided on the male housing 5 when the disposition positionof the detection member 7 is shifted downwards with the lock bandportion 11 locked on the lock portion 13. Thus, the restriction on thedetection member 7 is released which restricts the detection member 7from moving in the disassembling direction relative to the femalehousing 3. Because of this, when the pair of housings 3, 5 are in theproper fitting state, the detection member 7 can be removed from thefemale housing 3.

In this way, a fitting condition of the pair of housings 3, 5 can bedetected based on whether or not the detection member 7 can be removedfrom the female housing 3.

The constructions of restricting and releasing the restriction on thedisassembling of the detection member 7 are provided on the lock bandportion 11 which is provided so as to be deflected into theaccommodating part 9 and the male housing which fits in the femalehousing 3. Then, the disposition position of the detection member 7 iscaused to vary as the lock band portion 11 deflects so as to restrict orrelease the restriction on the disassembling of the detection member 7.Therefore, a deformable portion does not have to be provided on thedetection member 7. In addition, the detection member 7 does not have toperform any expanding action in which the detection member 7 expandsoutwards of the accommodating part 9 or the pair of housings 3, 5.Therefore, no space has to be provided outside the accommodating part 9or the pair of housings 3, 5 to permit the expanding action of thedetection member 7.

Consequently, the detection member 7 is not deformed even though it isused a plurality of times, thereby making it possible to increase thedurability of the detection member 7. In addition, the detection member7 is not deformed in any way, and therefore, no space has to be providedfor permitting the deformation of the detection member 7, thereby makingit possible to suppress the enlargement in size of the connector 1.

In addition, the loosening restricting portions 23 are provided on thedetection member 7 which are brought into abutment with the looseabutment restricting portions 21 provided on the accommodating part 9 soas to be restricted from moving in the direction which intersects theassembling direction. Therefore, there is no such situation that thedetection member 7 gets loose relative to the female housing 3, therebymaking it possible to hold the assemblage of the detection member 7 tothe female housing in a stable fashion.

Further, the movement restricting portion 27 is provided on thedetection member 7 which is brought into abutment with the abuttingrestricting portion 25 provided on the accommodating part 9 so as to berestricted from moving in the assembling direction. Therefore, thedetection member 7 can be positioned relative to the female housing 3,thereby making it possible to hold the assemblage of the detectionmember 3 to the female housing in an ensured fashion.

In addition, the holding portions 29 are provided on the detectionmember 7 which are brought into abutment with the male housing in such astate that the pair of housings 3, 5 are in the proper fitting state soas to hold the disengaged state between the restricting portion 15 andthe disassembling movement restricting portion 17. Therefore, thedetection member 7 can be removed from the female housing in an ensuredfashion in such a state that the pair of housings 3, 5 are in theproperly fitting state.

A second embodiment will be described by use of FIGS. 13 to 15.

In a connector 101 according to this embodiment, a projection 103 isprovided so as to project within an accommodating part 9. A slidinggroove 105 is brought into sliding engagement with the projection 103.Like reference numerals will be given to constituent members of thisembodiment which are like to those of the first embodiment, and thedescription thereof will be omitted. Since the constituent members arelike to those of the first embodiment, the description of configurationsand functions thereof will be omitted while being referred to those ofthe first embodiment. An advantage to be obtained by the secondembodiment is the same as that obtained by the first embodiment.

As is shown in FIGS. 13 to 15, the projection 103 is provided on bothside faces of the accommodating part 9 so as to project inwards. Thesliding groove 105 provided on the detection member 7 is brought intoengagement with the projections 103 in such a state that the detectionmember 7 is assembled into a female housing 3.

The sliding groove 105 are provided on both side faces of the detectionmember 7, and end portions thereof in an assembling direction in whichthe detection member 7 is assembled into the accommodating part 9 areopened to be formed into openings 107, while end portions in adisassembling direction in which the detection member 7 is disassembledfrom the accommodating part 9 is formed into bottom portion 109. Adistance from the opening 107 to the bottom portion 109 is set so thatan initial assembling position of the detection member 7 to a femalehousing 3 constitutes a normal position in such a state that theprojection 103 is in abutment with the bottom portion 109 when theprojection 103 is inserted into the sliding groove 105. In addition, theposition of the opening 107 is set so that the projection 103 issituated thereat when the engagement of a disassembling movementrestricting portion 17 and a restricting portion 15 is released.

Because of this, when the detection member 7 is assembled into thefemale housing 3, the projection 103 is inserted into the sliding groove105 from the openings 107, and the detection member 7 is moved in theassembling direction until the projections 103 come into abutment withthe corresponding bottom portion 109. Then, the detection member 7cannot move any further in the assembling direction, whereby the initialposition of the detection member 7 with respect to the female housing 3can be determined. In addition, the disassembling movement restrictingportion 17 comes into abutment with a release portion 19, and holdingportion 29 come into abutment with abutting holding portions 41, wherebythe detection member 7 is moved into the disassembling direction. Thiscauses the projections 103 to move in the assembling direction whilesliding within the sliding groove 105 so as to release the engagementbetween the disassembling movement restricting portion 17 and therestricting portion 15, whereupon the projection 103 is situated at theopenings 107. Thus, the engagement between the projection 103 and thesliding groove 105 can be released.

Note that shapes of the projection 103 and the sliding groove 105 areset so that the detection member 7 can move to take a posture whichenables the facilitation of restriction on disassembling or release ofthe restriction in accordance with a change in the disposition positionof the detection member 7. In addition, the detection member 7 cannot beremoved from an upper portion of the female housing 3 from a point intime when the pair of housings 3, 5 are started to be fitted togetheruntil a point in time when they are put in a proper fitting state by theengagement of the projection 103 with the sliding groove 105. This canimprove the detecting function of the detection member 7 together withthe engagement between the disassembling movement restricting portion 17and the restricting portion 15.

In the connector 101 configured as has been described heretofore, sincethe abutting restricting portion is made up of the projection 103provided on the accommodating part 9 so as to project thereinto and themovement restricting portion is made up of the sliding groove 105 withwhich the projection 103 is brought into sliding engagement. Therefore,by setting the position of the projection 103 and the shape of thesliding groove 105 so that the detection member 7 can take the posturewhich enables the facilitation of restriction on disassembling orrelease of the restriction in accordance with the change in thedisposition position of the detection member 7, a fitting condition ofthe pair of housings 3, 5 can be detected by the detection member 7 inan ensured fashion.

Although only some exemplary embodiments of the invention have beendescribed in detail above, those skilled in the art will readilyappreciated that many modifications are possible in the exemplaryembodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings andadvantages of the invention. Accordingly, all such modifications areintended to be included within the scope of the invention.

Note that in the connector according to the embodiments of theinvention, while the engagement between the disassembling movementrestricting portion and the restricting portion is implemented by themovement of the detection member in the disassembling direction, thedisassembling movement restricting portion and the restricting portionmay be set so as to come into engagement with each other in such a stagethat the detection member is assembled to one of the housings. As thisoccurs, since the detection member does not have to move in thedisassembling direction, a further reduction in size of the connectorcan be realized.

The disclosure of Japanese Patent Applications No. 2009-180550 filedAug. 3, 2009 including specifications, drawings and claims areincorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

1. A connector, comprising: a first housing; a second housing configuredto be attached with the first housing; an accommodating part provided inthe first housing; a first lock portion provided in the accommodatingpart and configured to be displaced; a detection member accommodated inthe accommodating part and configured to be displaced according to adisplacement of the first lock portion; a second lock portion providedin the second housing and configured to push the first lock portion todisplace the first lock portion and to engaged with the first lockportion when the second housing is attached with the first housing; afirst restricting portion provided in the first lock portion; a secondrestricting portion provided in the detection member and configured tobe engaged with the first restricting portion when the first lockportion is displaced by the second lock portion; and a release portionprovided in the second housing and configured to release the firstrestricting portion from the second restricting portion when the firstlock portion is engaged with the second lock portion.
 2. The connectoras set forth in claim 1, further comprising: a third restricting portionprovided in the accommodating part; and a fourth restricting portionprovided on the detection member and contacting the third restrictingportion so as to restrict a movement of the detection member in adirection intersecting an inserting direction in which the secondhousing is inserted into the first housing to be attached therewith. 3.The connector as set forth in claim 1, further comprising: a fifthrestricting portion provided in the accommodating part; and a sixthrestricting portion provided in the detection member and contacting thefifth restricting portion so as to restrict a movement of the detectionmember in a direction opposite to an inserting direction in which thesecond housing is inserted into the first housing to be attachedtherewith.
 4. The connector as set forth in claim 3, wherein: the fifthrestricting portion is a projection provided on the accommodating part,the sixth restricting portion is a groove formed on the detectionmember, and the projection is engaged with the groove.
 5. The connectoras set forth in claim 1, further comprising: a holding portion providedin the detection member and configured to come in contact with thesecond housing so as to hold a state where the detection member isreleased from the first housing when the first lock portion is engagedwith the second lock portion.
 6. The connector as set forth in claim 1,further comprising: a groove formed on the detection member; and aprojection provided on the accommodating part and engaged with thegroove.